Pete Wedderburn

Pete Wedderburn qualified as a vet twenty-five years ago, and now spends half his working life writing newspaper columns. He lives in Ireland with his wife, two daughters and a menagerie of dogs, cats, poultry and other furry and feathered companions. Pete answers readers' queries about their pets' health in his video Q&A – he is also on Twitter as @petethevet and has a Facebook Fan Page.

Tiny does happen to be a particularly good-looking and healthy cat. There's another cat beauty contest coming up in Birmingham in November – the Supreme Show of the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy (the peculiarly titled organisation that mirrors the Kennel Club in the cat world). Pedigree cats have so far largely escaped the public criticism that's been loaded onto dog breeders, but if you look at the long list of inherited diseases that are common in many breeds of cats, perhaps it's just a matter of time. "Pedigree Cats Exposed" may be a television documentary just waiting to happen.